Chapter One

CORD

The buxom blonde sidled up to me at the poker table. I glanced up from my cards, irritated at the intrusion.

“Last night was fun,” she purred, leaning close enough to give a view of her silicone-enhanced cleavage.

“Thanks,” I muttered as I continued to study my hand and plan my play.

The girl’s overly lined lips turned downward to form a sparkly pink pout.

“Well, call me sometime, okay?” she said, laying a hand on my forearm. “You did put my number in your phone, right?”

“Yep, sure,” I nodded, remembering how I’d actually been scrolling social media when she recited the digits.

After a few more minutes, she finally wandered away and I exhaled.

“Your move, Mr. Romero,” the dealer reminded.

“I’ll raise,” I replied, sliding five one thousand-dollar chips across the table.

The man across the table from me chuckled as he slid five of his own chips into the pot.

“Do you even remember what her name was, Cord?” he grinned.

I smiled wryly and gave a slight shake of my head. “Haven’t a clue, Nate. And I think you’re getting to know me all too well.”

“You know what they say…keep your friends close and your enemies closer,” my business rival replied.

“Which of those two groups do I fall into, exactly?” I asked.

“I’m out,” the player to my left said with a thick accent, folding his hand and taking another sip of his whiskey on the rocks. I understood him to be some sort of royalty from Bahrain. A young and spoiled sort, and the type who always think they have it all figured out when they know zilch about how the real world operates. It’d been easy to call his bluff. The ice clinked in his glass prettily in contrast to the background ringing and whirring of the slot machines.

“Same,” said Massimo Galtieri, the ruddy-faced, barrel-chested man next to Nathan.

I was familiar with Galtieri, an international hotelier purported to have ties to the Sicilian mafia. He laid down his cards and picked up his Cuban cigar with one hand while reaching for the scantily clad woman standing behind him with the other. She caressed his upper back and simpered.

“I’ll raise,” Nathan said, smiling broadly as he scooted more coins into the pot. “To answer your question, Cord,” he continued, “I consider you as, shall we say, a worthy opponent? I’ve watched your rise to fame and fortune in the tech industry ever since you showed up in my sphere of acquaintance. Lucky break you had with that tax app you developed while you were still at MIT. What are you working on now, exactly?”

I guffawed, sliding more chips into the center of the table.

“I’m not that drunk, Nate. You’re my biggest competition.”

“I’m well aware that you and your fledgling company are giving my business a run for our money to speak in simple terms.” Nathan leaned back in his chair and raised an eyebrow, looking at me with an amused expression. For a man in his 50’s, the Nathan Hale was in great shape. His silver hair and goatee were immaculately groomed, and I’d never seen him wear anything other than custom-tailored business suits straight from Paris. I wondered if I’d turn out to be anything like him at that age. Maybe I’d be even richer.

“Call,” I said, motioning to the dealer.

He nodded and the three of us spread our cards face-up on the table.

Damn it. I groaned and raked a hand through my wavy brown hair when I saw Nathan’s straight flush to my four of a kind and the dealer’s simple pair.

“Pot goes to Mr. Hale,” the dealer declared, taking his rake and sweeping the chips towards my nemesis.

Nathan shook his head and chuckled. He turned to a member of his security behind him and pointed at the stack of chips. The sunglass-wearing brute stepped to the table dutifully and gathered them into a black velvet bag.

Nathan rose and walked around the table towards me. He clapped me on the back.

“Don’t look so glum, Cord. Let’s go have a seat in the bar. Next round of drinks is on me.”

I eyed him suspiciously. What was his angle? Figuring it wouldn’t hurt to sit down with him for an actual face-to-face conversation rather than constantly having to guess each other’s next move, I followed him out of the casino at the Bellagio and towards the private gentleman’s club where we both held memberships. Heads turned and people stared at our entourage, trying to figure out who the important people were.

The security detail ahead of us pulled the doors open and we entered the red-carpeted salon.

“Good evening, Mr. Hale. Mr. Romero.” The pretty dark-haired hostess grabbed two leather-backed menus from her station and tottered towards us in four-inch black stilettos. I met her gaze and held it for a few seconds too long, then let my eyes travel downward and linger over her assets, making my admiration clear.

“Remind me of your name, sweetheart?” I asked.

She immediately dropped her gaze to the floor and her cheeks flushed with a rosy hue. “Tabitha,” she replied, glancing back up and batting her false eyelashes at me. Those would need to go, along with all the makeup she was wearing. I never liked my women to look like clowns, especially not in bed.

“Tabitha,” I repeated. “What time do you get off work tonight?”

Beside me, Nathan’s smug expression reminded me of the Chesire Cat.

“Um, midnight,” the girl giggled.

“Would you like to join me for a nightcap then in my suite?” I asked. “I can send someone to escort you.”

“Of course!” she gasped, her hand fluttering to her chest. “Wow, I can’t believe I’ve just been invited to Cord Romero’s suite!”

Nathan and I laughed, and he slung an arm around my shoulders.

“Oh, to be fortune’s fool again,” he said.

I narrowed my eyes. Was he referring to me or the hostess?

Tabitha led us to a table by the window overlooking one of the hotel’s infinity pools. The Vegas cityscape lay beyond, the blinding lights of the strip flaunting their sin into the inky stillness of the night, and I wondered how many stars I couldn’t see.

Nathan and I sat down across from each other.

“Old-fashioned for me,” he said to Tabitha. “Cord?”

I smiled. “Martini, shaken not stirred.”

This prompted a chuckle from him as I knew it would, and I grinned. Two could play at this game. Tabitha nodded and turned to take our orders to the bar.

“So,” Nathan said. “How does it feel to have just lost half a million dollars in a poker game?”

I shrugged. “Plenty more where that came from. In fact, I’m pretty sure my investments have already surpassed that in earnings in the past hour.”

He steepled his fingers together. “I know you well enough to know that even though you’ve become a billionaire, the loss still stings.”

I sucked in my breath. He was right.

“You remind me of myself when I was your age, Romero,” said Nathan. “Smart, ambitious, driven. The world is your oyster. Tell me, what has it cost you?”

“Cost me?” I asked, feeling my forehead furrow with confusion. “Nothing. Only like you said, ambition and motivation. My education was free due to my college scholarship. I’ve always been willing to do whatever it takes to get to the top and never settle for anything less.”

“Hm.” Nathan turned to gaze out the window. Sin City lay at our feet. Whatever we wanted could be ours for the taking in a heartbeat.

The waitress returned with our drinks, blushing again when my fingers brushed against hers as I took my martini from her.

“Can I get your gentlemen anything else?” she asked.

“Just yourself after midnight,” I replied rakishly.

“I’ll be all yours,” she said before she left us to return to her station.

“Have you ever been in love, Cord?” Nathan asked when she was out of earshot.

The question surprised me. “That’s a little out of nowhere, Nate,” I said. “I don’t see why it’s any of your business, but yes, actually I have.”

“And where is she now?” he continued.

I took a long drink of my cocktail instead of answering.

“I see,” he said. “Why don’t we make another little wager? For the amount you just lost…half a million dollars? If you prove me wrong, I’ll return every dime. If you win, you match the sum.”

I swirled the contents of my glass, feeling the alcohol go to my head and reckless because of it. Or it was just easier to blame the drink for the tumult of emotions that suddenly flooded my system.

“I’m listening.”

Nathan leaned forward. “There is one thing I bet you cannot do. And that is, go back to the place you came from and make amends with the one who got away. If you make her fall in love with you again, you’ll get your money back. If you fail, it’s a million in my pocket. What do you say? Will you accept this bet?”

I tipped my martini glass into my mouth and drained the contents. The liquid ran like a trail of fire down my throat. I snapped my fingers, motioning to a passing server to bring me another. Then I looked my opponent straight in the eye.

“Game on.”